For people who have not been in therapy, there are often many questions: When is therapy right for me? How long can therapy last? Is therapy only about talking about feelings? All of these are important questions, and there can be different answers based on what has brought you to consider therapy to help you with your problem or your feelings of distress.
There isn't necessarily a "right time" for therapy. Some people have specific problems they want to talk about with a trained licensed professional. Some people come to therapy to get to know themselves and their feelings better. Many people come to therapy when the strategies they have used for a long time to cope with difficult feelings or with a specific problem are no longer working as effectively as they used to.
Sometimes therapy can be brief and last several months. Some examples where this may be the case (although not in every case) are the death of a loved one, public performance anxiety, or adjusting to a new change in one's life like a recent move.
Often therapy can last longer, in instances where someone wants to learn why they do not feel self confident, how traumatic incidents in the past are affecting their lives presently, how to feel more fulfilled in their lives, and how to build more satisfying, lasting relationships.
I believe that real progress from any therapy comes from the work that I and my client put in to building a trusting relationship in a safe environment where feelings, thoughts and behaviors can be explored. This can take time, because safety and trust don't happen overnight. But I work openly, compassionately, and diligently with you so we can create that therapeutic space to explore how thoughts and feelings you may not even be aware of may be leading you to the distress you are feeling or the problem you are experiencing.
I also believe that therapy can accomplish many outcomes. Through therapy, we can change our internal sense of self to enjoy and engage with the world more. We can alter long held beliefs about ourselves and perceptions of our world that may not work for us anymore and may not support us in becoming who we want to be. Therapy can help us understand more about our history, our identity, and our roles in the world to see ourselves and others in a way we can work with to be happy.
We can often think of our work in therapy like this: moving from being asleep or unaware to the world and our abilities to an aliveness and awareness of all that we are capable of with the ability to tolerate all the feelings that come up in our lives. Even more importantly, the opportunity for introspection and self-reflection that therapy offers can lead to real personal change that isn't something that is necessarily lost over time.
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Please call me to discuss my fees for therapy, as they vary based on a number of circumstances, including whether it’s group, individual or couples therapy. Generally, therapy fees are an expense covered out of pocket and sometimes can be reimbursed by your insurance company. In those instances, I am more than happy to provide you with a bill for fees paid so that you can forward that to your insurer for reimbursement.
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